Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) Position Raised by NEA Management Company LLC

NEA Management Company LLC boosted its holdings in Verona Pharma plc (NASDAQ:VRNA) by 9.3% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 5,584,753 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 476,190 shares during the quarter. Verona Pharma accounts for approximately 6.1% of NEA Management Company LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 7th biggest position. NEA Management Company LLC owned approximately 0.07% of Verona Pharma worth $80,756,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. CWM LLC bought a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma in the second quarter worth $29,000. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma during the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. EMC Capital Management purchased a new stake in shares of Verona Pharma during the 2nd quarter valued at about $38,000. Legato Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Verona Pharma in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $154,000. Finally, Jump Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Verona Pharma in the fourth quarter worth approximately $226,000. Institutional investors own 85.88% of the company’s stock.

Verona Pharma Price Performance

VRNA opened at $29.66 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $25.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $18.96. The company has a current ratio of 8.61, a quick ratio of 8.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Verona Pharma plc has a 1-year low of $11.39 and a 1-year high of $30.73.

Verona Pharma (NASDAQ:VRNA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported ($0.88) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.35) by ($0.53). During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($0.11) EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Verona Pharma plc will post -2.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on VRNA. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $36.00 target price on shares of Verona Pharma in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price objective on Verona Pharma from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their target price on Verona Pharma from $32.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 28th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Verona Pharma presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $36.00.

Verona Pharma Company Profile

Verona Pharma plc, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on development and commercialization of therapies for the treatment of respiratory diseases with unmet medical needs. The company's product candidate is ensifentrine, an inhaled and dual inhibitor of the phosphodiesterase (PDE) 3 and PDE4 enzymes that acts as both a bronchodilator and an anti-inflammatory agent in a single compound, which is in Phase 3 clinical trials for the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma, and cystic fibrosis.